Nature Army

A Contest of Citizenship, Creativity, and All Things Goodly

Time: For one of them? Roughly 5 minutes after you get the hang of it, plus decoration.
Skills Needed: Cutting, tying, drawing

Yes, we are actually in the process of making octopus cat toys. Believe it or not, the animal shelter approved this, which greatly surprised me. If you happen to be near Chester County, PA, their website is http://www.ccspca.org/ and I can't seem to be able to make that a link so you'll just have to type it in. Anyway, they also accept the dog biscuits at http://www.naturearmy.com/2011/09/dog-biscuits-1.html which also is not a link. Oh well, that's better than being unable to post pictures like last time. Anyway, after making several blankets (no, these are human ones), and cutting out the corners, we had a lot of scraps. (By the way, that's a good idea of someone's, whoever that may be. Cut out a square from each blanket that you make with the instructions on the second post and it isn't nearly so deformed.) Anyway, I asked for the scraps and took them home in a ginormous shopping bag. Now, anyone else might make a doll blanket or a sweater for Teddy or a soft quilt to drape over your nightstand. We made octopus cat toys for the animal shelter. Here's how you do it: You'll need 2 squares of fleece, both about 6" x 6", but the size isn't too critical. One square must be somewhat light-colored, solid, and either equal to or larger than the other, which can be any old thing. You can use a handful of scraps for the other one, actually. Next, squash the any-old-thing square into a ball in the center of the other. Gather the lighter square around it and hold it like that for a while. You can twist it around to make it go faster. When you take the lighter square off, there should be a depression where the any-old-thing was. With sewing scissors, cut a sort of tentacle thing up to but not into the depression. You might actually want to cut it a bit short. Repeat this as many times as you want— even though it's an octopus, no one's going to count the tentacles, least of all the cats. When your tentacles are cut, replace the any-old-thing and, with a strip of fleece about 1/2 inch wide, tie it shut. Very securely. Twice. Now I know that at this point you will have a fully functioning cat toy. However, it's no fun unless you decorate them with permanent markers.

Aren't they just adorable? Now, I can completely understand that a lot of people might not want to do this. It's not one of our more eye-catching projects. Which is why I'm turning this into a contest. These are the rules. With two or more octopus cat toys, use props and position them accordingly. The scenes will be scored on creativity, craftsmanship on the cat toys, and the photography. You can post a comment on this post with the picture and a caption that treats the octopi like people, similarly to this:
This octopus couple enjoys a romantic candlelit dinner at a restaurant in upstate New York.

At least two of the cat toys involved must be donated, unless you have made additional one(s). Please specify whether or not you are already in the Nature Army because if nothing is written I will assume you have not joined but now are. Winners of the contest will receive bragging rights. Check back often because on March 25 (the due date) I will judge them for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places. The next post will include information about that. Good luck!

Rather Feathery Ornaments

Time: Depends on how elaborate you want to be
Skills Needed: Tying, spreading, etc.

WHAT! You think the Nature Army can afford to take the winter off!!! We have work to do!

Actually, winter is a convenient winter timing for lots of Nature Army tasks, both indoors and (shiver) outdoors. Though I'm posting this after the holidays, we did this on the 24th of December. (We are experiencing technical difficulties. Please stand by.) And yes, contrary to popular belief, it is OK to put up winter decorations after the holidays.

A while ago, my siblings and I decorated an outdoor holiday tree (fine, a holiday branch) for the birds. The ornaments are English muffins spread with peanut butter and covered in birdseed. We tied them on our branch (which, by the way, gives a stunning view of the stream nearby) with fleece strips leftover from making blankets for the animal shelter. (You can find out more about that at  http://www.naturearmy.com/2011/08/blanket_for_cats.html)

To make this delightful snowman, we used a cookie cutter to cut the shape out of the end of a loaf of bread. Looking back, it would have been more fun to forget the English muffins and just use cookie cutters. Obviously, we arranged the birdseed to make a nose, eyes, buttons, and the hat.

 

If you don't have birdseed, there are many other things you can use. Dried fruit, bread crumbs, peanuts, and cereal in moderation will often attract birds like sparrows and cardinals. We didn't use this idea, but you could also string cranberries and popcorn on your tree like tinsel.

String your ornaments with yarn, strips of fabric, or twine loosely, so the birds can take the strings for their nests, and you may also want to put out a birdbath. It can just be a soup plate filled with water (not too deep, or they won't be able to stand in it).

To get into the Nature Army with this, you can make your own tree/branch. Please don't put up a bird feeder and tell us about it. Take the time to put together something really special. You can make your own tree, or build a bird feeder yourself. Maybe you could get some friends together to make a bird bath. By the way, the birds really do like this; less than a week after we put it up, it was gone.

Right now our ornaments are limited to peanut butter, bread, and birdseed/cereal, so if you have any ideas, post a comment and tell us about it! You can find more ideas on helping backyard birds and gardening at http://www.birdsandblooms.com/. So, uh, yeah. One-sided good-byes are awkward.